[[foldercontrol]]

[[folder: Heroes]]

!!Matteo

A jordaini student and the main male protagonist of the trilogy. Matteo is idealistic, incredibly intelligent and talented, and dedicated to Halruaa and the Jordaini Order. After witnessing the "execution" of his friend Andris, meeting Tzigone, and getting mixed up in Kiva's schemes, he finds himself forced to confront the darker side of his beloved nation while navigating the politics of its wizards.

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* AccidentalInnuendo: In-universe. Thanks to his sheltered upbringing, he'll occasionally slip into this unknowingly. Tzigone's usually around to lampshade it.
* AllMenArePerverts: Defied. Kiva arranges for him to miss the jordaini rite of purification [[spoiler: ie, ritual castration]] because she assumes that a human man who isn't a eunuch will never be able to keep it in his pants and will inevitably disgrace himself - with Tzigone or someone else - and thereby leave himself in a position for Kiva to manipulate him. Unfortunately for her, Matteo is the sort of man who takes his vow of celibacy seriously.
* AntiMagic: Like all jordaini, he's immune to all but the most powerful magic.
* AwesomeEgo: [[invoked]] Though he tries to deny it, especially early on, Matteo is a very proud man. In Tzigone's opinion, however, considering how intelligent, learned and skilled he is, he's ''earned'' a little arrogance.
* BadassBookworm: A requirement for a jordain is to be both a skilled warrior and an extremely knowledgeable scholar. Matteo excels in both areas.
* BadPowersGoodPeople: Matteo has [[spoiler: a natural affinity for the Shadow Weave]]. Doesn't stop him from being the most fundamentally decent of the trilogy's main characters.
* BigDamnKiss: Poked fun at in ''The Wizardwar''. He convinces Tzigone he's not an illusion by kissing her. It works because he'd ''never'' done something like that before, and therefore an illusion based on Tzigone's memories wouldn't be able to do it - and because, in Tzigone's opinion, ''only'' the real Matteo would think a kiss like that was worth remembering.
* CelibateHero: Unlike most full jordaini he's not [[spoiler: a eunuch]] thanks to Kiva's machinations, but still never ends up romantically or sexually involved with anyone.
* TheComicallySerious: Tzigone sometimes sees him this way.
* CompanionCube: He's never without his jordaini medallion - or at least he wouldn't be, if [[RunningGag Tzigone didn't keep stealing it]].
* DeadpanSnarker: The preferred form of jordaini humor - dry and understated.
* DualWielding: Usually Dual Wields a pair of long knives.
* FatalFlaw: Pride, as explicitly pointed out in the third book. However, he ends up making peace with it.
* TheGoodChancellor: As an honest jordain, this is expected of him. He ends up fulfilling this role [[spoiler: to Zalathorm himself]].
* GuileHero: Not as streetwise as Tzigone, but incredibly well-learned and becomes increasingly proficient at navigating Halruaan law and politics as the series progresses.
* TheHeart: In the third book, he's all that keeps Tzigone and Andris working together rather than going for each others' throats half the time.
* MoodyMount: His favorite horse is named "Cyric", after a particularly volatile GodOfEvil from the broader Realms pantheon. The horse is loyal to Matteo, but otherwise lives up to the name.
* OnlySaneMan: Considering that his best friends are the deeply conflicted Andris and the, shall we say, ''unorthodox'' Tzigone, Matteo frequently finds himself in the role of the voice of reason.
* ParentalAbandonment: Like all jordaini, he doesn't know his parents. [[spoiler: His mother was mentally damaged by the rigorous process of bearing a jordaini child; his father is Vishna]].
* PlatonicLifePartners: With Tzigone, by the end of the trilogy.
* SpockSpeak: His ordinary conversation doesn't show this ''too'' badly (at least no more than any other jordain), but when he gets into full-on scholar mode he can slip into it.
* SupportingProtagonist: Though he's the first good guy to be introduced and gets the most POV sections, by Halruaan standards, the mere fact that Tzigone's a wizard and he's a jordain makes him her sidekick by default, and it tends to be her personal quest that pushes the overall story arc forward, with Matteo being swept along (not entirely unwillingly) for the ride.
* ToBeLawfulOrGood: The chief concern of Matteo's arc across the trilogy. A jordain is expected to have three loyalties - to truth as a concept, to Halruaa as a nation, and to the personal goals of their individual wizard patron. Like most jordaini, he has to come to terms with what to do when those loyalties conflict - and considering he's rather more scrupulous than many of his brethren, that just makes the dilemma even more challenging.
* WideEyedIdealist: At the beginning of the first book. He tempers it with a somewhat more realistic outlook as the series progresses.
* WillNotTellALie: The jordaini hold truth to be the highest virtue, and Matteo will not tell a deliberate falsehood, though he gets better at bending the truth later on.

!!Tzigone

A street performer/thief with mysterious powers and an even more mysterious past, Tzigone is the main female protagonist of the series. She's missing memory of most of her early life, and has spent the last several years searching for information about her MissingMom and, by extension, her own past. Winding up in Matteo's debt, she becomes his companion and close friend.

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* ActionGirl: She's too slight to be much good in a straight fight, but makes up for it by being agile, clever, and more than a little ruthless.
* AmnesiacHero: She remembers the last several years, but not her early life. [[spoiler: Her memory gradually comes back during the trilogy]].
* AntiHero: Not a terribly extreme example, but her morality's definitely darker than Matteo's; she's perfectly willing to cheat or fight dirty, and dispatches [[spoiler: Dhamari]] rather brutally.
* AntiMagic: She has jordaini magic resistance... ''and'' wizard magic.
* ArtifactAlias: [[spoiler: As of the epilogue to ''The Wizardwar'', she's learned her real name - Ria - but at least in her interactions with her friend Matteo, still goes by Tzigone]].
* BlitheSpirit: A cheerfully chaotic influence in rule-and-tradition-bound Halruaa. Deconstructed in that it's made clear that her sunny demeanor is something she has to constantly work to maintain, and she's got a dark and ruthless streak underneath it.
* BoyishShortHair: While her mother had long hair, Tzigone keeps hers shorn rather short, playing into the {{Bifauxnen}} look.
* {{Bifauxnen}}: She's very pretty-faced, but can still disguise herself as boy without much difficulty. Matteo thinks she's male for about the first chapter of their interactions. Further underscored by the fact that while she has no problem dressing up girly if the situation calls for it, her usual wear tends to be masculine or androgynous in style.
* BrokenBird: Though she hides it well, her past was ''not'' fun and has left a number of lasting scars in her psyche. .
* CelibateHero: Despite her fondness for innuendos and dirty jokes, she never once shows genuine romantic or sexual interest in anyone across the entire trilogy.
* CombatPragmatist: Tzigone doesn't have a lot of brute strength on her side, but she makes up for it by being perfectly willing to fight dirty using guile and magic.
* DarkAndTroubledPast: She was born to a criminal [[spoiler: albeit falsely accused]] mother, spent her early life on the run from said mother's enemies, ''lost'' said mother and grew up alone on the streets suffering various implied abuses, found herself being hunted ''again'' as a young adult, never able to trust anyone, settle in one place, or even hold on to personal possessions... yeah, her backstory wasn't fun, and it's a minor miracle she's as well-adjusted as she is.
* GuileHero: Of a rather different sort from Matteo; where he's learned and intellectual, she's streetwise and wily.
* HeroicBastard: And this is Halruaa, where "Bastard" is the ''worst'' insult you can throw, doubly so if its true, because being a wizard's bastard carries a death sentence. [[spoiler: Though her parents weren't married when she was born, she is eventually acknowledged to be Zalathorm and Keturah's lawful daughter]].
* MagicMusic: An ability inherited from her mother.
* MasterOfDisguise: Given time and effort, Tzigone can pull off a dizzying array of impersonations.
* MissingMom: Her search for her mother is one of her driving goals across the series.
* NWordPrivileges: Or rather "B" word. "Bastard" is considered the foulest word in any Halruaan's vocabulary; Tzigone, being one herself, sees little problem with using it fairly liberally, which scandalizes Matteo at first.
* OOCIsSeriousBusiness: When she starts talking about duty and destiny in book three, everyone else takes it as a sign of just how bad things have gotten.
* OnlyKnownByTheirNickname: "Tzigone" means "gypsy"; it's not her real name, which she herself doesn't remember. [[spoiler: Her real name is Ria, but judging by the epilogue Matteo at least still calls her "Tzigone"]].
* ParentalAbandonment: She spends most of the trilogy trying to figure out exactly what happened to her parents.
* PlatonicLifePartners: By the end of the series, with Matteo. Their friendship isn't based on romantic love or sexual attraction, as is explicitly pointed out during their ordeal in the Unseelie Realm, but after everything they've been through together, they still end up the most important people in each other's lives.
* QuestForIdentity: Her other main goal, closely linked to the first.
* RagsToRoyalty: Across the trilogy, she goes from being an orphaned street urchin who's lived her whole life on the run to an apprentice wizard (in a [[TheMagocracy country]] where being a talented wizard makes you nobility) [[spoiler: to finding out that her dad's the king himself]].
* RebelliousPrincess: [[spoiler: According to the epilogue, she's taken to slipping out of the palace at night to get into bar fights, and it's Matteo's job to get her out in one piece]].
* RefugeInAudacity: In a country where most people will barely even ''bend'' a rule, Tzigone tends to get by via being and acting as outrageously as possible.
* RoyalBastard: She's the bastard daughter of the renegade wizardess Keturah [[spoiler: and King Zalathorm of Halruaa]]. She's very determined to keep this from coming out, however, since Halruaa's laws regarding marriage and procreation are draconian and a wizard's bastard is executed out of hand if both parents can't be named. [[spoiler: In the end, Zalathorm acknowledges Tzigone as his daughter and marries Keturah, giving Tzigone a proper family for the first time in her life- and also making her Princess of Halruaa, much to her consternation.]]
* SheCleansUpNicely: Tzigone is usually either in varying stages of "unkempt" or in disguise, but it's made clear that she has beauty if she puts effort into it - though according to Sinestra she's got nothing on [[WorldsMostBeautifulWoman her mom]].
* SuspiciouslySpecificDenial: Tzigone would like to remind you that she is ''not'' a wizard. It doesn't matter that you just saw her casting spells, she's ''still'' not a wizard. [[spoiler: At the end of the first book, she officially becomes an apprentice wizard. Matteo is quick to point out the irony]].[[note]]technically, she ''isn't'' a wizard by D&D standards; her magical ability is innate rather than learned, making her a sorcerer. However, Halruaan culture doesn't really make the distinction, mostly treating sorcerers as a particularly weird kind of wizard.[[/note]]
* TomboyAndGirlyGirl: They don't interact a whole lot, but in the second and third books she's the Tomboy to fellow apprentice Farrah's Girly-Girl.
* TheTrickster: She's a little bit thief, a little bit con artist, a little bit actress, and a little bit wizard, and she hates arbitrary rules. Goes with the territory.
* VoiceChangeling: Probably as a side-effect of her affinity for MagicMusic, Tzigone has a very high level of control over her voice and can imitate almost anyone else's.
* WizardDuel: Has a formal one against Procopio in the third book. As he ''badly'' outclasses her in power, she ends up having to goad him into breaking the rule, and therefore forfeiting.
* YouFightLikeACow: She's prone to insulting combat banter; Procopio gets hit with it particularly bad in the aforementioned duel.

!!Andris

A member of Matteo's class at House Jordain and his closest friend. Andris is "executed" by Kiva early in the first book, but it's actually a cover for her recruitment of him into her conspiracy. Andris spends most of the trilogy torn between loyalty to Kiva's cause and the ideals of the jordaini.

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* TheAce: Almost universally considered the best jordaini student in his class; even Matteo will admit that Andris is better than him in his chosen fields.
* AntiHero: Moreso than Tzigone; Andris is capable of justifying some pretty dark things to himself if he thinks they're necessary, and in the third book makes it plain that he'd be willing to kill Tzigone if he felt she was a threat (admittedly, she said the same to him).
* AwesomenessByAnalysis: In the third book, he manages to break into a wizard's mansion on account of having memorized the entire floor plan beforehand. Tzigone may not like him much, but even she's impressed enough after finding out to wonder if he'd be willing to go into the thieving business as her partner.
* BadassBookworm: Though he focuses more on the "badass" than the "bookworm", usually.
* CombatPragmatist: Perfectly willing to fight dirty, and usually with a bit of personal flair, particularly against wizards.
* DeathFakedForYou: Early in the first book, courtesy of Kiva.
* HalfHumanHybrid: "Half" is overstating it, but there's elf blood in him. [[spoiler: Kiva's, specifically]].
* HeelFaceRevolvingDoor: Whose side is Andris on again? [[spoiler: Halruaa's, ultimately]].
* HeroicSacrifice: [[spoiler: Dies at the climax of the trilogy, taking a bolt of death magic meant for Zalathorm]].
* HeterosexualLifePartners: With Matteo at the beginning of the series; they're explicitly as close as brothers, though they end up drifting apart.
* NecessarilyEvil: In the second book, he fully admits that Kiva is evil, but still works for her on the belief that her cause is necessary.
* NobleTopEnforcer: Even at his greyest, he's still nobler than Kiva, but does her work.
* PhotographicMemory: Claims he can remember being in his mother's womb, though Matteo suspects he may have been exaggerating.
* TheStrategist: Even Matteo will admit that Andris is better at this than he is; he was the best military thinker in their class, which considering this is the jordaini we're talking about is saying something.
* WellIntentionedExtremist: For most of the second book, he helps Kiva war against Halruua, thinking that it's the right thing to do. [[spoiler: He ends up changing his mind]].

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Villains]]

!!Kiva

A vengeful wild elf magehound, and the most heavily focused-on and developed antagonist in the trilogy. Kiva manipulates the lives of Matteo, Tzigone, and Andris as part of a lengthy scheme to free the souls of her kin from imprisonment - and, perhaps more importantly, to get revenge on Halruaa's wizards for her own suffering.

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* AffablyEvil / AxCrazy: Kiva is a ''bit'' bi-polar, prone to swinging back and forth between being a friendly, winning villain and a revenge-driven BloodKnight at the drop of a hat. This only gets more pronounced as the series goes on and she becomes increasingly unstable.
* AlasPoorVillain: Her death at [[spoiler: Vishna's]] hands feels less like the triumphant defeat of a powerful villain and more like quietly putting down a mad dog. Even the dying Kiva herself seems relieved that it's all over.
* BadBoss: Kiva's hard on her henchmen and allies, especially in bloodthirsty mode. She treats her elf and Crinti allies so harshly that they end up abandoning her, and [[spoiler: kills Procopio herself to punctuate a point at the end of ''The Wizardwar'']].
* BigBad: The first book sets her up as the overall villain of the trilogy...
** BigBadDuumvirate:... but by the third, she's in partnership with the returned [[spoiler: Akhlaur]].
* BroughtDownToNormal: At the end of the first book. In the second, she fixes it.
* CastFromLifespan: At the end of the first book, she loses most of her powers. She manages to restore them partway through the second, at the cost of visibly aging her.
* DarkActionGirl: A very capable combatant and utterly without mercy.
* DragonInChief: In the backstory, on paper she worked for Dhamari in tracking down Keturah. In actuality, it was more like ''he'' worked for ''her''.
* EvilCounterpart: To Keturah and Tzigone, at various points.
* EvilSorceress: A talented magic-user and more than a ''little'' off her rocker.
* FantasticRacism: Been on both ends. As an elf in human-dominated Halruaa, she's been treated as a curiosity at best and an object of scorn at worst, but she herself frequently makes her contempt for humans - and human men in particular - obvious.
* TheHeavy: She may not be the most powerful or purely malevolent villain in the trilogy, but she's the most consistently front-and-center in the narrative.
* LadyOfWar: In ''The Magehound'' she maintains a feminine, aristocratic air even through all her schemes and battles. In the later two books, after she's driven from power she drops being ladylike entirely, making it probable that this was always just a façade.
* ManipulativeBastard: Very good at playing on the emotions of others, at least short-term. Long-term she often fumbles due to her own erratic nature.
* ReallySevenHundredYearsOld: Doesn't look much older than Matteo or Tzigone. She's actually a peer of Zalathorm and Akhlaur.
* RevengeBeforeReason: By the end of the trilogy, it's clear she blames ''all'' of Halruaa for Akhlaur's crimes and won't rest until she's destroyed the whole kingdom. To get her revenge, she's actually willing to work with [[spoiler: Akhlaur himself]] in the short-term.
* SquareRaceRoundClass: She's an elf necromancer. Akhlaur lampshades this, pointing out that "they" say elves ''can't'' be necromancers... but then, ''they'' clearly never met Kiva.
* {{Synchronization}}: She and Akhlaur are tied together magically; if he dies, so does she, but it doesn't cut the other way [[spoiler: since the Cabal is keeping Akhlaur alive]].
* ThatManIsDead: Her full name is Akivaria, but she doesn't answer to it, feeling that "Akivaria" died in Akhlaur's dungeons, leaving only Kiva behind.
* VillainProtagonist: Her POV and development are central enough to the trilogy to put her on equal footing with Matteo and Tzigone for the "protagonist" slot.
* VillainTeamUp: Allying with Procopio wasn't part of the original plan, but she was certainly willing to take advantage of it.
* VillainousBreakdown: She's prone to these when her plans go south; she has a notable one at the end of ''The Magehound'' and a worse one at the end of ''The Wizardwar''.
* VillainousFriendship: She and Mbatu, her [[TheDragon dragon]] from the first book, are genuinely fond of and loyal to each other.
* WellIntentionedExtremist: If questioned, she'll insist that everything she does is in service of destroying Akhlaur's legacy and [[spoiler: freeing her tribe's souls from the Cabal]]. In truth, she's just out for revenge, though she doesn't admit it even to herself until the very end.
* WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds: For all her schemes and power, when you get down to it, inside Kiva is still the same hurting, angry adolescent she was when she was Akhlaur's prisoner - and she wants to make sure that all of Halruaa knows her pain.
* XanatosSpeedChess: For much of ''The Floodgate'', she's basically just throwing threats at Halruaa and seeing what takes [[spoiler: and can buy her time to bring Akhlaur back]]. It's implied that this sort of "run lots of schemes at once and see what works out" is her standard MO.

!!Akhlaur

A tremendously powerful necromancer who lived two hundred years ago and nearly conquered Halruaa before being defeated by his former friend Zalathorm, the current king. His legacy still remains throughout Halruaa, whether in the form of artifacts, undead, or lingering experiments. Though no one has seen him since his defeat, it is possible that somewhere he is still alive, plotting to regain power...

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* ArchEnemy: To Zalathorm.
* TheArchmage: One of the most powerful wizards a land famed for its powerful wizards ever produced; he and Zalathorm are almost neck-and-neck power-wise.
* BaldOfEvil: His hair was burned off by his bound demon when Zalathorm unleashed it on him, and apparently never grew back even two hundred years later.
* BigBad: Ultimately, all the conflict in the trilogy traces back to him eventually.
* BigBadDuumvirate: During ''The Wizardwar'', he spends most of his time allied [[spoiler: with Kiva]].
* CastingAShadow: He doesn't do it often, but [[spoiler: he knows how to use the Shadow Weave]].
* DeadpanSnarker: Akhlaur has a dry, morbid wit, and is prone to holding a snarky running commentary on everything around him.
* TheDreaded: He may have vanished two centuries ago, but everyone is ''still'' scared of this guy.
* EarlyInstallmentWeirdness: Regarding what school of wizardry he practices. His first-ever mention in a Second Edition ''Forgotten Realms'' sourcebook, described him as a conjurer.''Counselors and Kings'', which fleshed him out, makes it repeatedly and emphatically clear he's a necromancer.
* ElementalPowers: In addition to necromancy, he specializes in water magic - perhaps unsurprising, considering where he spent the last few centuries.
* EnergyAbsorption: He can use both the Cabal and the laraken as mediums to absorb magic used against him and add it to his own repertoire, though he can't cast spells so acquired if they're from a discipline unfamiliar to him (druid magic, for example, is useless once stolen).
* EvilCounterpart: To Zalathorm, his former friend, nemesis, and sole magical equal.
* EvilFormerFriend: To Zalathorm and [[spoiler: Vishna]]; the three wizards were boyhood friends who allied to work together for the betterment of Halruaa... until the lure of power corrupted Akhlaur completely.
* EvilSorcerer: The living embodiment of everything dark in TheMagocracy of Halruaa.
* EvilTowerOfOminousness: Had one before Zalathorm sunk it into a swamp. [[spoiler: When he returns, one of his first actions is to raise it once again]].
* EvilIsNotAToy:
** Plays along with [[spoiler: Kiva]] insofar and ''only'' insofar as it suits his own goals.
** He himself was on the receiving end of this in his backstory; he kept a bound water demon as a minion and source of power, but the demon ''hated'' him and when Zalathorm released it, it immediately attacked him, leading directly to his being sucked into the Elemental Plane of Water along with it.
* EvilerThanThou: Procopio, Dhamari, Shanair, even Kiva... in terms of sheer power and malevolence, none of them has anything on Akhlaur [[spoiler: and he quickly hijacks the plot of the trilogy upon returning]].
* EvilutionaryBiologist: Magical version; he not only binds the undead to his will, he also modifies living things to serve him better. His creations include the laraken [[spoiler: and the entire Jordaini Order]].
* FallenHero: Possibly; at the very least, he and Zalathorm once worked towards the same cause, but while he wasn't as bad then as he became, he may have been a TokenEvilTeammate even then.
* FishPeople: He magically altered himself to survive in the Elemental Plane of Water, complete with scales, gills, and webbed hands.
* GenuineHumanHide: He uses the skins of his victims to make parchment for his scrolls and as bindings for his spellbooks. He prefers elves for this purpose, when he can get them, but in the Elemental Plane of Water makes due with tritons, who are close enough.
* KnightOfCerebus: ''Counselors and Kings'' was always serious at its core, but Akhlaur's [[spoiler: return]] kicks the scale and threat of the conflict up several notches. This isn't just about one mad elf-woman and Matteo and Tzigone's personal quests anymore - it's a struggle for the survival of Halruaa itself.
* LackOfEmpathy: Except for how they serve his ends and/or provide amusement, other people just don't really ''matter'' to Akhlaur. A lot of the time he doesn't even go so far as to be sadistic and simply treats people as he would any other raw material for his projects.
* LukeIAmYourFather: [[spoiler: He's Andris's many-times-removed great-grandfather. Played with in that Andris learns this, but Akhlaur never does - though based on some of Kiva's thoughts on the matter, he probably wouldn't have treated the revelation as being of much interest if he ''had'' known]].
* MagicStaff: It's actually a live eel he petrified into that shape.
* {{Necromancer}}: Explicitly stated to be the greatest in Halruaa's history, at that.
* NoImmortalInertia: [[spoiler: his body collapses into dust upon his death. The process is prolonged and appears to be quite a painful way to go]].
* NotSoStoic: His usual reserve cracks just three times during the trilogy - once in the backstory when Zalathorm [[EvilVersusEvil unleashed his bound demon on him]], once shortly after his return when he's suddenly confronted with the ghost of his treacherous apprentice [[HeelFaceTurn Noor]], and finally [[spoiler: at the climax of ''The Wizardwar'' when the Cabal is destroyed and he realizes that he's just been made mortal again]].
* OnlyOneName: He's always just "Akhlaur", despite most Halruaan wizards having surnames. A blink-and-you'll-miss-it reference gives his surname as "Reiptael", but he himself never uses it.
* RedAndBlackAndEvilAllOver: Red and black are the colors of necromancy in Halruaa, and most of its practitioners wear them. Not all necromancers are evil, but Akhlaur certainly is.
* SealedEvilInACan: Zalathorm imprisoned him in the Elemental Plane of Water. [[spoiler: At the end of the second book, Kiva releases him]].
* SoftSpokenSadist: Akhlaur rarely raises his voice or shows any emotion beyond a sort of distant, wry amusement - which only serves to make his acts of cruelty and depravity all the more disturbing.
* SorcerousOverlord: Becoming one is his goal, as he sees himself as the true and rightful ruler of all Halruaa; he was getting close to it when Zalathorm took it down [[spoiler: and he picks up where he left off after his return]].
* SoulJar: [[spoiler: The Cabal is this for Akhlaur as well as his former friends Zalathorm and Vishna]].
* WithGreatPowerComesGreatInsanity: The [[spoiler: Shadow Weave]] is implied to have induced this effect, [[spoiler: though the way it's said to work, ie making you become more like yourself, he was probably already evil on some level]].
* WizardDuel: He and Zalathorm have an odd one at the trilogy's end; since they're both tied to the same SoulJar, neither can inflict lasting harm on the other. [[spoiler: But it also means that when Zalathorm kills himself, Akhlaur is dragged down with him]].
* VillainousBreakdown: After [[spoiler: the Cabal]] is destroyed, he ''flips out''.
* YourSoulIsMine: Has a nasty habit of trapping the souls of his victims in gemstones [[spoiler: like the Cabal]] to increase his own power.

!!Lord Procopio Septus

A powerful wizard-lord, the mayor of Halruaa's capital city, and, if he has his way, Zalathorm's successor as king. Procopio enters the story as a result of being Matteo's first wizard patron, and recurs throughout the trilogy playing all sides against each other in his efforts to cement himself as heir apparent to the Halruaan throne.

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* TheArchmage: He may not be on Zalathorm or Akhlaur's level, but for all the wind he blows he's still a force to be reckoned with, as Tzigone finds out the hard way.
* BigBadWannabe: A fairly successful one, but ultimately he can't compete with the likes of Akhlaur and Kiva. The latter even compares him to a rogue hen raiding its own henhouse, while Akhlaur is a fox.
* TheChessmaster: A sort of inverse of Kiva; Procopio is quite good at long-term plans, but he's a blunt instrument in terms of personal manipulations.
* CollectorOfTheStrange: He collects jordaini, especially those who are skilled at battle strategy. Most wizard-lords have only one or two jordaini on staff; Procopio usually has at least ''eight'' at any given time.
* DirtyOldMan: He certainly does like his pretty serving girls, and has sired numerous children both legitimate and otherwise.
* DroppedABridgeOnHim: [[spoiler: Kiva murders him casually, purely to illustrate her point]].
* EnemyMine: Teams up with Zalathorm at the end of ''The Floodgate'' to stop the invasion of Halruaa (that he himself helped cause), both because Procopio doesn't actually want Halruaa conquered and so he can come out of it as a war hero.
* TheEvilPrince: Variation to account for a non-hereditary monarchy. He's not Zalathorm's son, but he is the most obvious candidate to be named his heir, and is perfectly willing to deal under the table to speed up the timetable and get himself on the throne.
* EvilSorcerer: Of sorts. Procopio ''himself'' is evil; his magic isn't terribly unusual for a Halruaan lord's repertoire and, with a few exceptions, isn't all that sinister.
* FauxAffablyEvil: He's politician enough to keep up a friendly façade most of the time, but inside he's generally looking down his nose at everyone, and on occasion he'll get angry enough to let out how he really feels.
* FriendlyEnemy: At the beginning of the series, he considers Basel to be his best friend ''and'' his nemesis. As the books go on, they drop the "friendly" part and become straight-up enemies.
* GroinAttack: During the duel, Tzigone summons a behir and orders it to bite Procopio in the crotch. When reminded that she was only supposed to do subdual damage, she retorts that at the moment Procopio is doubtless very ''subdued''.
* HumiliationConga: The last few chapters of ''The Wizardwar'' are... less than kind to him.
* InSeriesNickname: "Old Snow Hawk", courtesy of Tzigone.
* LetsGetDangerous: Aforementioned GroinAttack makes him take the gloves off during his duel. Only some quick thinking on Tzigone's part saves her life.
* MindRape: Early in the second book, he casts a mind-reading spell so intrusive it's directly compared to sexual assault. Unfortunately for him, he casts it on Tzigone, who {{No Sell}}s it and punches him in the face for his troubles.
* MundaneUtility: He knows a spell that can lure an entire flock of doves into his mansion. He uses this because, as a diviner, he can read the future by studying the flight patterns of birds... and because he's rather partial to roast dove.
* TheNapoleon: Matteo sums him up thusly: proud, arrogant... and short.
* NotSoDifferentRemark: Kiva gives Procopio (and by extension, all of Halruaa) a TheReasonYouSuckSpeech claiming he's not so different from Akhlaur. [[spoiler: Then she kills him]].
* NotSoHarmlessVillain: Most people's initial perception of Procopio is that he's little more than a pompous, self-satisfied windbag. The fact that he spends most of his day behind a desk, rather than fighting or working magic, reinforces that perception. Provoke him sufficiently, however, and he ''will'' remind you that he ''earned'' that archmage status, thank you very much.
* OutsideContextProblem: Compared to the MythArc of the trilogy, anyway. Procopio has nothing to do with Akhlaur, the Cabal, Kiva [[spoiler: at first]], Keturah and Tzigone's backstory, or Zalathorm's personal history. He just ''really'' wants to be king.
* {{Seers}}: Like Zalathorm, he's a master diviner, the most respected school of wizard in Halruaa.
* SmugSnake: Procopio's good, but he ''thinks'' he's great, and that gulf between his perception and reality comes back to bite him.
* VillainRespect: He may not like Matteo much, but he has a great deal of respect for the jordain's intelligence {{Determinator}} qualities.
* VillainTeamUp: With Kiva; he hopes that he can use her to cause chaos that he can then stop, making himself look the hero.
* WarIsGlorious: Deliberately invoked; he knows that people love a war hero, and so he's determined to become one (even if he has to manufacture the war) in order to better position himself as heir apparent.
* WizardDuel: Has a formal one with Tzigone in the last book.

!!Dhamari Exchelsor

A modestly talented wizard who was once married to Tzigone's mother, Keturah. On the surface, Dhamari is an ineffectual but friendly man; underneath, he's a treacherous and venal little schemer who'll stop at nothing to realize his ambitions, even if it means allying with Kiva and setting up his wife as a broodmare to produce a child with the right combination of abilities they need.

----
* AnimalMotifs: Frequently compared to a weasel.
* ArrangedMarriage: With Keturah. [[spoiler: Kiva arranged for it to happen]].
* AscendedExtra: In the first book, he's mentioned in flashbacks a couple of times by Keturah as "my husband", but is never directly relevant and nothing is revealed about him. In books two and three, he's a major character.
* BeardOfEvil: Wears a beard, is definitely evil.
* BigBadWannabe: Though he's fairly self-aware about it; his standard MO is to ride the coattails of more dangerous villains like Kiva or Procopio and pick up their leavings. [[spoiler: He becomes much more ambitious and dangerous after returning from the Unseelie Realm, but it doesn't avail him and he's the first of the four main villains to bite it]].
* BitchInSheepsClothing: That friendly, unassuming little man? One of the most thoroughly unpleasant creeps you're liable to meet.
* DeceptiveDisciple: He was Keturah's apprentice before he married her.
* DirtyCoward: Dhamari isn't a terribly powerful wizard and knows it; he never exposes himself to actual harm if he can at all avoid it, something Kiva holds in contempt.
* EvenEvilHasStandards: He reaction to finding out that [[spoiler: Kiva brought Akhlaur back]] is horrified panic, and is appalled by the thought of what [[spoiler: Akhlaur]] might turn Halruaa into if he got the throne. He only gets over it when Kiva confirms that [[spoiler: she plans to Akhlaur and Zalathorm to die fighting each other]].
* FamilyUnfriendlyDeath: [[spoiler: Torn to shreds by magical knives after Tzigone pulls his protective medallion off]].
* ItsAllAboutMe: Kiva is vengeful, Procopio is ambitious, and Akhlaur is, well, ''Akhlaur'', but in terms of sheer selfishness, nobody beats Dhamari.
* ManipulativeBastard: With his specialty being saving his own skin.
* MindRape: [[spoiler: Courtesy of the Unseelie. However, he comes back from it much more dangerous]].
* NobilityMarriesMoney: The given reason for his marriage to Keturah; she was a wizard-lord, he was the scion of a wealthy merchant family, and their marriage would net Keturah money and Dhamari prestige. The truth is rather more sinister.
* SexlessMarriage: With Keturah, even though his plan required her to bear a child. Considering that he's a DirtyCoward and she was one of the most talented wizards of their generation, he was probably afraid of what she'd do to him if he tried to force himself on her.
* SmugSnake: Though again, he's fairly self-aware that he's a moderately skilled schemer playing with much more dangerous people. He does, however, have one stroke of brilliance - by wearing the medallion that Keturah used to protect herself from him, he's protected from ''himself'' and, so long as he plays his cards right, is almost infallible in his schemes, practically an artificial MagnificentBastard - until such time as the medallion comes ''off''.
* TookALevelInBadass: [[spoiler: After Kiva rescues him from the Unseelie, he kicks both his competence and ruthlessness up a notch]].
* VillainsOutShopping: He collects ''butterflies''. [[spoiler: Takes a darker turn when it turns out he pins small -but sapient - fairies to display boards in exactly the same way]].

!!Shanair

A Crinti chieftain who allies herself with Kiva and leads an invasion of Halruaa.

----
* AmazonBrigade: Leads one; the Halruaans actually call her people "Shadow Amazons".
* AsskickingLeadsToLeadership: How one leads a Crinti war band.
* BloodKnight: The Crinti don't try to intimidate their enemies - they entice them instead, because they love a good fight ''that much''.
* CombatSadomasochist: The Crinti are a ProudWarriorRace who worship the goddess of pain. Do the math.
* DarkActionGirl: As would be expected of a Crinti of her station.
** ActionMom: At least one of the warriors under her command is her biological daughter.
* TheDragon: To Kiva in ''The Floodgate''.
* EvenEvilHasStandards: Warfare and killing are all well and good as far as Shanair is concerned, but when Kiva banishes a Crinti warrior to the Unseelie Realm? ''That'' was out of line.
* HalfHumanHybrid: A mixed-blood descendant of dark elves and Dhambrathi humans.
* KarmaHoudini: Partially. [[spoiler: Her invasion is thwarted, but Shanair herself escapes back to Dhambrath alive and well after cutting ties with Kiva]].
* NobleDemon: Shanair is a brutal warlord, but she does have a sense of honor and lines she won't cross. See EvenEvilHasStandards. She also lets Matteo and his friends go after breaking with Kiva when she probably could have killed them, because they were Kiva's enemies and not hers.
* ProudWarriorRaceGirl: As the daughter of a highly martial culture who takes great pride in her heritage, it goes without saying.
* VillainousFriendship: One-sided. Shanair genuinely likes and respects Kiva and wants to please her. She thinks it's mutual. It isn't. When Shanair finds out, she's ''not'' happy.

!!Mbatu

A wemic warrior and Kiva's bodyguard, huntsman, and confidant from the first book.

----
* TheBrute: He wields no magic of his own, just skill, strength, and guts.
* DiscOneFinalBoss: Is killed at the end of ''The Magehound''.
* TheDragon: To Kiva in ''The Magehound''.
* HotBlooded: He's definitely got a temper on him.
* LaserGuidedAmnesia: Inflicted on him by Tzigone so that he'll forget he caught her. Unfortunately, Kiva knows how to reverse the effects.
* NiceJobFixingItVillain: By forcing Matteo and Tzigone to learn to work together or get captured, he inadvertently created the team who would defeat Kiva.
* NobleDemon: He may be extremely ruthless in his service to Kiva, but he's an extremely loyal and courageous warrior nonetheless.
* OurCentaursAreDifferent: As a wemic, he has the upper body of a man and the lower body of a lion.
* ProudWarriorRaceGuy: Shows definite signs of this attitude.
* ScarilyCompetentTracker: In his pursuit of Tzigone early in the first book.
* UndyingLoyalty: To Kiva.
* VillainousFriendship: He and Kiva genuinely like and are loyal to each other, sharing a strong rapport.

!!The Unseelie Folk

A mysterious race of faerie beings whose realm overlaps with the mortal world in the Nath region of Halruaa. They like their privacy and have a tendency to MindRape anyone who ventures into their realm, earning themselves a reputation as one of the few things that drow elves and Crinti fear.

----
* AscendedExtra: Mentioned offhand in the first book, they become much more important in the second and third.
* DarkIsEvil: They're associated with darkness and shadow, and, well, "not nice" is a decided understatement.
* TheDreaded: Even the Crinti, utter {{Blood Knight}}s that they are, will pack up and flee if there's even a ''rumor'' of these things in the area.
* TheFairFolk: These are some ''scary'' fairies.
* GreaterScopeVillain: Probably the most powerful malevolent force in the trilogy, though they don't actually ''do'' much on-page beyond policing their borders. However, in the backstory they were partially responsible for creating the drow (and indirectly the Crinti, by extension) and [[spoiler: Matteo speculates that they may have been involved in corrupting Akhlaur as well]].
* HumanoidAbomination: Though they are generally humanoid in shape, Tzigone gives up on trying to understand or rationalize them in human terms.
--> The Unseelie were what they were, and they were terrible beyond imagining.
* MasterOfIllusion: The Unseelie Realm is essentially an ever-shifting limbo of illusion, which the Unseelie themselves are happy to manipulate.
* MindRape: The fate of anyone unfortunate enough to stumble into their clutches.
* PsychologicalTormentZone: The Unseelie Realm.
* SilentAntagonist: Though they sing bizarre, unintelligible war-songs, they never speak intelligibly on-page.
* SuperSpeed: They move so quickly that they unaided eye can barely follow them.

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Supporting Characters]]

!!King Zalathorm

The ruler of Halruaa and widely considered to be its greatest living wizard. Zalathorm has held the throne for longer than most of his subjects have been alive, but many of the other wizard-lords have begun to feel that he is losing his grip, and have started plotting to take his place.

----
%%zce* ArchEnemy: To Akhlaur.
* TheArchmage: Near-universally regarded as the most powerful wizard in Halruaa[[note]]According to his ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'' stats, he's a 29th level character, with ''all'' his levels in one or another spellcasting class[[/note]].
* TheAtoner: Though he was never as bad as the likes of Akhlaur, he definitely has skeletons in his closet. The contemporary Zalathorm, however, is very committed to doing right by his people.
* BackFromTheDead: [[spoiler: After his HeroicSacrifice, Keturah and Tzigone manage to restore his soul to his body]].
* BenevolentMageRuler: A powerful wizard and a responsible king who genuinely tries to do the best he can for his people.
* BigGood: Far and away the most powerful good presence in the series.
* TheChainsOfCommanding: The demands of his office plainly weigh heavily on him.
* CharacterAlignment: InUniverse, officially given as LawfulNeutral, though as characterized in the trilogy, he acts more LawfulGood.
* HeroicSacrifice: [[spoiler: Once the Cabal is destroyed, he kills himself to pull Akhlaur down with him]].
* InTheBlood: Though he's usually collected and serious, every so often he'll show a much more humorous, playful side [[spoiler: that strongly resembles his daughter, Tzigone]].
* LukeIAmYourFather: [[spoiler: He's Tzigone's biological father]].
* MarryForLove: He genuinely loves Queen Beatrix, despite the fact that she seems barely aware of who he is [[spoiler: and he's appalled when he learns that her mental damage is, indirectly, his fault]]. Of course [[spoiler: it turns out that he and Keturah were in love even before she became Beatrix, and look set to pick up that relationship when her memory and original personality are restored]].
* ModestRoyalty: He doesn't put on a whole lot of airs; next to the extravagance of his fellow wizard-lords, he's downright humble.
* MyGreatestFailure: [[spoiler: Finding himself unable to destroy the Cabal after capturing it from Akhlaur, he used it himself to support his reign, leaving the countless souls within it trapped. He's very tormented over this, but can't find a better solution until Matteo, Tzigone, and Andris show up]].
* OnlyOneName: Like Akhlaur, he only goes by his first name. [[AllThereInTheManual Supplemental materials]] give his surname as the rather mundane "Kirkson".
* ReallySevenHundredYearsOld: Looks like a man in hale middle-age. His ''actual'' age can be measured in centuries.
* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: He's King of Halruaa and generally one of the wisest, most level-headed wizard-lords.
* SupportingLeader: During the final battle, he goes out to face Akhlaur while [[spoiler: Matteo, Tzigone and Andris destroy the Cabal]].
* UniversallyBelovedLeader: He's seemingly had this in the past. The people of Halruaa gradually losing faith in him is a significant subplot across the trilogy, though [[spoiler: he seems to have gotten much of his popularity back by finishing Akhlaur for good]].
* WizardDuel: With Akhlaur at the climax.

!!Queen Beatrix

Halruaa's half-mad queen and Zalathorm's wife. Most of the time, she barely seems aware of the world around her, locking herself in her quarters and constantly building clockwork automatons rather than interacting with the court. Her past is a mystery even to herself, and her secrets may determine the fate of Halruaa.

----
* CloudCuckooLander: To say that Beatrix is odd would be ''greatly'' understating the matter. Most of the time she seems barely aware of other people. [[spoiler: This is probably a side-effect of the Cabal wiping her mind]].
* CreepyMonotone: Her voice is always soft, even, and devoid of inflection. [[spoiler: Averted as Keturah, who speaks normally]].
* DePower: She was once a powerful wizard in her own right [[spoiler: especially as Keturah]] but her magical abilities have withered to almost nothing. [[spoiler: It's unclear to what extent her powers returned along with her memory]].
* ForgetsToEat: Beatrix often needs to be reminded to take care of her bodily functions. Some characters speculate (behind her back) that she's sometimes on the verge of forgetting she's not an automaton herself.
* GadgeteerGenius: The ''countless'' clockwork creations she surrounds herself with are a testament to her skill, even in her state.
* GodSaveUsFromTheQueen: Deconstructed. Beatrix is not malevolent, and is dangerous only because of what [[spoiler: Kiva and the Cabal]] did to her. [[spoiler: As Keturah, she remains a fundamentally decent person]].
* GoneHorriblyRight: The reason for Beatrix's condition. [[spoiler: The Cabal was enchanted to protect its creators and their family. It protected Beatrix, aka Keturah, from her traumatic past by erasing most of her mind]].
* LackOfEmpathy: Barely registers an emotional response when her creations run amok and kill people, and states outright that she sees no difference between a merchant and a donkey (and no, she ''wasn't'' joking). Of course, whether or not she realizes other people are ''real'' in the first place is up for debate...
* LaserGuidedAmnesia: She remembers nothing prior to being a captive of the Crinti. [[spoiler: The Cabal kept it that way]].
* MagicMusic: Her singing voice has the same power as Tzigone's, and sounds uncannily similar. [[spoiler: That would be because she's Tzigone's mother]].
* MindRape: [[spoiler: A victim of it, courtesy of the Cabal]].
* MysticalWhiteHair: Subverted; it's a wig. [[spoiler: She's actually bald]]. She also wears white robes and makeup.
* TheReveal: [[spoiler: Queen Beatrix and Tzigone's mother, Keturah? They're the same person]].
* SummonMagic: [[spoiler: As Keturah, this was her specialty]].
* VainSorceress: Beatrix was once captured and tortured by the Crinti [[spoiler: on Kiva's orders]] and her face was left a ruin. In public therefore she always has on an illusion that makes her look like a much younger, more beautiful woman. This being [[TheMagocracy Halruaa]], nobody has a problem with using magic as a beauty aid.
* WalkingSpoiler: [[spoiler: The mad queen turns out to be one of the linchpins of the plot, and there are several key reveals about her]].

!!Vishna

A powerful, aged wizard and one of the instructors at the Jordaini College. He is Matteo's mentor and favorite teacher, but hides secrets of his own.

----
* TheArchmage: An extremely skilled and experienced battle wizard. [[spoiler: Akhlaur even refers to his old friend as the greatest battle wizard of their generation]].
* BrokenPedestal: [[spoiler: Matteo is appalled to learn of his dealings with Kiva, though he eventually forgives him]].
* FateWorseThanDeath: See ReforgedIntoAMinion.
* LukeIAmYourFather: [[spoiler: He's Matteo's biological father]].
* MeaningfulEcho: "I will grant you rest and respect" - an echo of a promise Zalathorm made long ago to Akhlaur's victims, said as his last words [[spoiler: to Kiva, before he executes her]].
* TheMentor: To Matteo, being his favorite teacher at the Jordaini College.
* MentorOccupationalHazard: [[spoiler: He's killed by Akhlaur and, in a seemingly impossible feat of magic, revived as a lich under Akhlaur's control]].
* TheMole: [[spoiler: For Kiva]].
* MoralMyopia: Vishna is very good at handing out wisdom and advice... to other people. [[spoiler: In his own dealings, he's something of a moral coward, particularly where Kiva is involved, but he does eventually do the right thing and pays the price for it]].
* OldMaster: An elderly [[spoiler: equivalent to Akhlaur and Zalathorm]] and powerful man who serves as a mentor to young jordaini, particularly Matteo.
* ReforgedIntoAMinion: [[spoiler: He gets turned into a lich and forced into Akhlaur's service]].
* SecretIdentity: [[spoiler: He is a peer and friend of Zalathorm, and former friend of Akhlaur. Unlike his fellows, who both took on towering personas, he's preferred the quiet life, taking on humble roles of which jordaini teacher is only the latest]].
* SecretlySelfish: [[spoiler: Despite his reputation as a wise and respected master wizard, he's actually rather weak-willed and selfish and is easily bullied by Kiva into doing her dirty work. When a conversation with his son forces him to acknowledge the harm he's helped cause, he shows signs of growing a backbone and passes on some crucial information - at the cost of his life]].
* WhatHappenedToTheMouse:[[spoiler: After killing Kiva, his final fate is not revealed - though the narrative makes a point of showing him recapturing his SoulJar from Akhlaur, so he may have destroyed it and killed himself]].
* WizardClassic: In a trilogy chock-full of wizards, he's probably the closest to this aesthetic.

!!Lord Basel Indoulur

A powerful, affable wizard-lord. He's is Procopio's FriendlyEnemy and, eventually, Tzigone's mentor.

----
* AmbiguouslyBrown: Noted to be dark-skinned, though exactly how this maps onto real-world ethnicities is uncertain.
* AscendedExtra: Has only a few brief scenes in the first book. He's a major character in the second and third.
* TheArchmage: Fairly low on the totem pole as far as Archmagi in this series go, but he's still a Halruaan wizard-lord, which counts for quite a bit.
* BigFun: A jolly, rotund man.
* CrouchingMoronHiddenBadass: Most people dismiss Basel as a friendly but harmless eccentric. See RetiredBadass and PapaWolf for why this isn't a smart move.
* EccentricMentor: Younger than usual for this trope, but fits the bill as a jovial and quirky but also very learned and powerful wizard who acts as a mentor to Tzigone and, less formally, to Matteo.
* FriendlyEnemy: He and Procopio have a good-natured rivalry. They become more serious enemies as Procopio goes to further extremes in the later books.
* LukeIAmYourFather: Invoked. He claims paternity for Tzigone when her bastardry is found out, and since he's known to have been a childhood friend of her mother's, people accept it. Subverted in that he's not actually her father. He's not Matteo's father either, though Matteo suspects it briefly.
* MagicKnight: You wouldn't think it to look at him, but as a former Jordaini combat instructor Basel is an extremely capable hand-to-hand combatant as well as a wizard, and occasionally he gets the opportunity to show off his skills.
* MentorOccupationalHazard: [[spoiler: Killed off by vengeful wizards midway through the last book]].
* PapaWolf: ''Don't'' hurt his apprentices. Seriously, ''don't''.
* ParentalSubstitute: Grows into this role for Tzigone, and to a certain extent, Matteo.
* RedHerring: ''The Floodgate'' and early chapters of ''The Wizardwar'' heavily tease that he may be the biological father of Tzigone, Matteo, or both. [[spoiler: Neither of them are his kids, at least biologically; he does become something of a ParentalSubstitute for them both]].
* RetiredBadass: Once he was a battle wizard and Jordaini instructor. Now he leads a relatively easy life as politician and teacher.
* UnEqualRites: He's a conjurer, not a terribly well-respected school of wizard. Procopio constantly ribs him about it.
* UnluckyChildhoodFriend: For Keturah. They were friends from an early age and Basel was at least a little in love with her, but either she never reciprocated or they simply never had the chance to make anything of it [[spoiler: despite what Tzigone thinks for a while]].

!!Themo

A jordani student who is better at fighting than scholarship; he's a classmate a close friend of Matteo and Andris.

----
* TheBigGuy: Physically large and the best fighter of the main jordaini.
* BoisterousBruiser: Especially boisterous by jordaini standards.
* DumbMuscle: Well, dumb by jordaini standards, anyway; he's probably still smarter than the average person.
* GentleGiant: When not fighting, he's a good-natured, friendly sort.
* MyGreatestFailure: His complete ineffectiveness against the Unseelie Folk weighs heavily on him; Matteo snaps him out of it.
* RefusalOfTheCall / IJustWantToBeNormal: He doesn't particularly want to be a counselor, preferring a soldier's life [[spoiler: and ends up leaving the jordaini]].

!!Zephyr

An elderly elf jordain in the service of Procopio Septus. He's a mentor to Matteo, but is also a co-conspirator of Kiva.

----
* AffablyEvil: Assuming he counts as evil in the first place.
* AmbiguouslyEvil: Whether or not he's actually ''evil'' in the first place is debatable; at the least, he's pretty in-denial about just how bad Kiva is.
* AntiVillain: He's willing to take ruthless steps, but ultimately just wants to free the elven souls Akhlaur imprisoned.
* CastFromLifespan: Not him, but Akhlaur cast ''from'' his lifespan and inherent magical ability in the backstory to create the laraken. This is why he's a non-magical jordain despite being an inherently magical elf.
* TheConsigliere: To Procopio; his job description as his chief counselor.
* DroppedABridgeOnHim: Killed by magehounds off-screen between books one and two after Kiva outs him as her co-conspirator.
* TheGoodChancellor: Ironically, considering he's involved with one of the trilogy's main villains; from what we see of his actual work, he seems to be a very sincere and dedicated jordain who often acts as his [[SmugSnake patron's]] conscience.
* TokenGoodTeammate: Too Kiva's initial conspiracy.

!!Cassia

King Zalathorm's counselor at the beginning of the series. She dislikes Queen Beatrix and Matteo.

----
* AltoVillainess: Well, Alto Antagonist; she opposes the heroes but isn't ''evil'' exactly. In any case, her rich, commanding alto voice is one of her most distinctive features and frequently commented on.
* EvilChancellor: Downplayed, in that she's more like a Jerkass Chancellor - though profoundly unpleasant and an obstacle to our heroes, there's no indication that she's actually corrupt in the practice of her job.
* HeKnowsTooMuch: Killed by Kiva near the end of the first book because she found out too much about her plans.
* {{Jerkass}}: She's extremely arrogant and goes out of her way to be unpleasant to Beatrix, Matteo, and Tzigone.
* LadyOfWar: Is elegant and noted to be a skilled fighter, though she never really gets a chance to demonstrate on-page.
* MurderTheHypotenuse: It's speculated by several characters that she's in love with Zalathorm herself and this is why she constantly tries to get Beatrix accused of crimes that would necessitate her removal or execution. Cassia herself doesn't comment on the issue.
* ObstructiveBureaucrat: Generally uses her authority to impede people she doesn't like, including the heroes.
* RedHerring: She initially seems like she's going to be a major threat, but it gradually becomes apparent that she doesn't really know anything more about the Cabal or Tzigone's and Keturah's histories than anyone else and her enmity for Matteo is entirely based on personal dislike rather than any sort of grand scheme. The primary piece of evidence tying her to the overarching storyline [[spoiler: turns out to have been forged by Kiva, who then kills her off]].
* TheSmurfettePrinciple: Female jordaini are rare; Cassia is the only one who actually appears [[spoiler: unless Tzigone counts]].

!!Sinestra Belajoon

[[/folder]]